The most common type of lighting for taking glamour images is the use of flash light, or Strobes. This type of light, while based on the same technology, is not to be confused with the type of flash that you affix to the top of your camera. For the purpose of this article we are talking about off camera flash. I shoot a lot of magazine sets with strobes. This lights give out a white light compared to tungsten lamps. They can therefore be easily mixed with daylight which is nearly the same color temperature.

Strobes give of an instantaneous flash of light that happens within about 1/100 of a second. They are powered by a capacitor that collects 110 or 220 volts, up-converts it to about 10,000 volts, and lets it all out at once when it is triggered.

Show Her You're A Pro.

For an amateur photographer posing a naked model can be a pretty intimidating experience. The best thing you can do to make your first shoot go smoothly is to do a ton of preparation. Know exactly what you intend to shoot before the model arrives. Knowing how you are going to pose the model, and when, will make your life a lot easier.

It is very important to give a model direction. In fact, the first sign of an amateur photographer is when the photographer just starts shooting while the model is moving around. All amateurs do this, and models immediately know that you do not know what you are doing. Even a very seasoned professional model wants to be told what will make her look better. Models cannot see themselves while you are shooting, so they have to have confidence in your shooting abilities. If you are directing them while you shoot, and encouraging them by saying things like “yes, that’s good!” or “wow this is amazing” - even if you are lying - then the model will gain confidence and it will show in the shots that she is more comfortable.

Tear Sheets

Always make a shot list of poses before the shoot day. I recommend pulling tear sheets from magazines and studying the poses that you like. I keep a book of tear sheets in my desk, and when I see something I have not thought of before, I file it away for future reference. Get a three ring binder, or scan the images into an iPhone or something so you can refer to them on set. Don’t let the model know about your book as it may erode her confidence in you. How the model perceives the photographer has

1001 Arabian Lights

There are as many ways to light a model as there are positions in the Kama-Sutra. How you light, and what choices you make, will dictate the mood or feel of your images. Successful photographers all have a "look" or "style" that defines them. They were not born with that style, but they shaped it with years of trial and error until they found what works for them. You need to do the same by experimenting. In the digital age we are now in, this is much easier than it ever was before. Instead of waiting for your film to go through the chemicals, we can now just shoot and adjust as we go along. Color temperature and color balance can now be adjusted in camera, on set.

General Types of Lighting

I will dedicate several articles to each type of light so this will serve as an overview. There are primarily four different